Lampshade



United States Crescenta, Calif., assignors to Lighting Specialties, Inc., =Los l"Angeles, Calif., a corporation of California lApplication June 14, '1957, Serial No. 665,825

Claims. (Cl. 24U- 138) This invention relates to lampshades and particularly to such shades having means for supporting the shade directly upon the bulb of an electric lamp.

It is a particular object of this invention to provide a lampshade of this general type which is composed of relatively few parts and can be inexpensively manufactured.

A type of lampshade in common use is made to be disposed beneath and supported on an overhead lampI bulb. This type of shade may be advantageously molded of plastic.

It is another object of the present invention to provide such a shade, the supporting means for which will comprise merely a single spring wire element.

The manner of accomplishing the foregoing objects, as well as further objects and advantages, will be made manifest in the following description taken in connection with the attached drawings in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of an electric lamp with a preferred embodiment of the lampshade of the invention attached thereto.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional View taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4.

Referring specifically to the drawings, a preferred embodiment of the invention is there disclosed as incorporated ina lampshade 10 which includes a shell 11 and a spring wire attaching element 12.

The shell 11 may be of any desired construction but is preferably made of molded plastic and has a cup shape with an upwardly flaring opening 13. Formed inwardly from diametrically opposite portions of the shell 11 adjacent the edge 15 of said shell are bosses 16 having elongated pockets 17. The pockets 17 have upper walls 18, end walls 19 and bottom walls 20 and lie in a plane which is normal to the axis of the shell 11.

The spring wire element 12 provides support for the shade 10 by which the latter may be supported on the bulb 25 of an electric lamp 26. This element is formed by bending a piece of relatively light spring wire to provide one complete spiral loop 27 which terminates in relatively straight end sections 28 having anchor lingers 29 bent from their free ends. The element 12 is so dimensioned that the spiral loop 27 may yieldably receive and grip the bulb 25 when pressed into this loop, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, and the fingers 29 are spaced apart when the element 12 is free so as to require this element to be compressed to bring lingers 29 together to where the element 12 may be inserted downwardly into the shell opening 13 to bring the fingers 29 into Ythe plane of the pockets 17.

i El@ gli ice When the element 12 is thus compressed and inserted into the shell 11, and then released the fingers 29 extend into pockets 17, as shown in the drawings, thereby effecting a relatively permanent assembly between the shell 11 and the element 12. This assembly remains undisturbed by the insertion of a bulb 25 into the spring element 12 and by the removal of the bulb therefrom.

lt is thus seen that the p-resent invention provides a simple lampshade comprising relatively few parts, that this shade may be quite inexpensively manufactured, and that this shade will satisfactorily perform its function and have a long, useful life.

While only a single embodiment of the invention is shown in the drawings, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made in this without departing fromthe spirit of the invention or the scope yof the appended claims.

The claims are:

1. An electric lampshade adapted to be supported on a lamp bulb, said shade comprising: a shell having an opening, there -being elongated pockets formed in diametrically opposed areas in said shell just within said opening; and a spring wire element formed to include a single, complete loop and end sections which are relatively straight and each of which is provided with an anchor linger bent from its free end, said element being so dimensioned 4as to require it to be compressed to bring said anchor fingers within said cup in registry with said pockets, said ngers extending into said pockets when said element is then allowed to expand, thereby assembling said element with said shell, said element and shell being so assembled, in the formation of said shade, that said loop of said element is disposed within said shell, said loop being properly dimensioned to yieldably receive and grip said bulb between opposite halves of said loop.

2. A combination as in claim 1 in which said pockets lie in a plane normal to the axis of said shade and include end walls and top and bottom walls which prevent the escape of said ngers from said pockets.

3. An electric lampshade adapted to be supported on a lamp bulb, said shade comprising: a shell having an opening; pocket means provided in said shell just within said opening; and a spring wire element including a single spiral loop terminating in end sections, said element being dimensioned to yieldably receive and grip said bulb within said spiral loop, and so as to require said element to be compressed to bring terminal portions of said end sections within said pocket means of said shell, said terminal portions of said element having anchor means which extend into said pocket means when said element is allowed to expand, thereby causing said shell and said element to remain in snugly assembled relation and anchoring said element in a given assembled relation with said shell.

4. A combination as in claim 3 in which said shell is molded from plastic and in which said shell is provided with diametrically opposed bosses, said pockets being formed in said bosses.

5. A combination as in claim 4 in which said pockets are elongated and lie in a plane normal to the axis of said shell.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,282,593 Kossmann Oct. 22, 1918 1,855,557 OLear Apr. 26, 1932 1,903,985 De Sherbinin Apr. 18, 1933 2,095,648 Oftedahl Oct. 12, 1937 2,475,405 Rousselle July 5, 1949 2,681,410 De Sherbinin June 15, 1954r 

